The United States Department of Defense approved a massive $1.9 billion arms deal with Israel, The Times of Israel reported Wednesday. The deal would add “thousands of bombs, air-to-air and air-to-surface missiles” to Israel’s arsenal for self-defense needs. The deal still requires Congressional approval.
The details of the possible sale were sent for congressional review this week after being approved by the Pentagon, the US Department of Defense said in a statement Tuesday.
If the agreement is finalized, Israel will receive a supply of precision-guided munitions consisting of 750 bunker buster bombs, 3,000 Hellfire missiles, 250 medium-range air-to-air missiles and 4,100 glide bombs, in a deal worth $1.879 billion.
In addition, the package includes 14,500 missile guidance systems — known as tail kits for Joint Direct Attack Munitions — which convert unguided bombs into GPS guided missiles.
One expert who spoke to Bloomberg News emphasized that the weapons in the deal address Israel’s need to deter Hamas and Hezbollah.
“The timing certainly has the appearance of calming Israeli fears about Iran,” said Gerald Steinberg, political science professor at Bar Ilan University outside Tel Aviv. “These supplies will also strengthen Israeli deterrence against Hamas in the south, and Hezbollah to the north.”
“These are weapons that Israel already has in its arsenal, and this shipment will help replenish the stock depleted by last year’s Gaza operation,” added Yiftah Shapir, who heads the Middle East Military Balance project at Tel Aviv’s Institute for National Security Studies.
The terms of the deal were announced on the website of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency:
The United States is committed to the security of Israel, and it is vital to U.S. national interests to assist Israel to develop and maintain a strong and ready self-defense capability. This proposed sale is consistent with those objectives.
The proposed sale of this equipment will provide Israel the ability to support its self-defense needs. These munitions will enable Israel to maintain operational capability of its existing systems and will enhance Israel’s interoperability with the United States. Israel, which already has these munitions in its inventory, will have no difficulty absorbing the additional munitions into its armed forces. …
The principal contractors will be The Boeing Company in St. Charles, Missouri; Lockheed-Martin Company in Archbald, Pennsylvania; General Dynamics in Garland, Texas; Elwood National Forge Co. in Irvine, Pennsylvania; and Raytheon Missile Systems in Tucson, Arizona. There are no known offset agreements in connection with this proposed sale.
[Photo: David B. Gleason / Flickr ]